


Family Tree

by Beyond_the_sass



Category: Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: F/M, Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-27
Updated: 2020-12-27
Packaged: 2021-03-10 16:27:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,073
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28360149
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Beyond_the_sass/pseuds/Beyond_the_sass
Summary: ONESHOT SERIES.COMPANION FIC TO 'Fix You'Part 2Leah has finally left La Push.But she struggles.Let’s take a look into Leah’s life and just exactly what she does to try and gain back a modicum of Independence that her family tree took from her over the years.As she goes through pain, anger, sadness and then... freedom.Story inspired by -- Family tree by Matthew West
Comments: 6
Kudos: 15





	Family Tree

_You didn't ask for this_

  
_Nobody ever would_

  
_Caught in the middle of this dysfunction_

  
_It's your sad reality_

  
_It's your messed up family tree_

  
_And all your left with all these questions_

  
_\- Family Tree by Matthew West_

* * *

It’s been exactly four months since Leah Clearwater left her home of La Push and decided to brave it up in the world.

And what a weird four months it had been.

* * *

After that ride with the nice couple, they stayed at a motel in Port Angeles and they were even nice enough to pay for her night there.

After that ride with the nice couple, they stayed at a motel in Port Angeles and they were even nice enough to pay for her night there.

Deep down, she felt touched.

The following morning, they were up, bright and early, though Leah was super nervous.

Had they found out what she’d done?

Were they looking for her??

Were they tracking her scent??

She was super tickled as multiple thoughts filtered through her mind.

Did she even want to be found??

But as everything that happened the previous day kept replaying in her mind, she knew she needed to leave.

She needed to be on her own, no matter how messed up and even more bitter she’d become.

The nice couple dropped her in Seattle, a town called Belltown to be precise.

Downtown Seattle.

Leah immediately went to a motel, deciding to pay for a couple of nights.

She wasn’t sure what to do.

She still had some money. A couple thousand dollars savings, that’s even separate from the money she received after her father… passed.

The first night was spent in her room in the motel, crying her eyes out like never before.  
She hadn’t been able to actually shed much tears when she found out about Emily and Sam.

She’d let anger and hatred cloud her judgement instead.

She hadn’t even been able to cry when her father passed, having had to stay strong for her mother and baby brother, while also carry guilt I’m her heart.

Her phone had been turned off all through the night and since she left.

She removed the SIM as she knew everyone would be calling her by now. She played with the thought of buying a new one.

The following day saw her actually leave the motel as she was starving.

She went to the restaurant opposite the motel, ordered food, kept her head down, ignoring the happy atmosphere, laughter, the noise in general being made around.

She did that for a week.

Same routine, before going back to her motel room and locking herself up again.

This routine suddenly stopped one morning though, when she decided to take a walk to the park.

It was a chilly day.

She sat on one of the benches, just staring at the scenery around her, ignoring shrieking children and laughing adults.

She knew she didn’t particularly look appealing. Heck, she looked like a walking zombie.

She practically shook with anger anytime thoughts of her 'pack' filtered through her mind.

Thoughts of Emily, the wedding.

Just… everything.

Why was she even treating herself like this anyway??

Didn’t she leave just to get away from all the negativity?

All the eyes she was getting from everyone?

And here she was… away from everything.

And she was practically doing the same routine all over again.

She sighed.

Just then, a poster flew right into her face, startling her as she grabbed it.

She was halfway through the process of squeezing it in a fit of anger, when she stopped as her eyes caught the title.

“Help wanted—Bookstore”

She mumbled as she straightened it.

She’d gambled with the thought of having a part time job like she once had in La Push, but hadn’t been too sure.

With a side glance, she threw the offending paper into the nearby bin, standing up to leave.

* * *

3 weeks later.

“You’re fired Clearwater! Leave!”

Leah glared angrily at her boss, before yanking off her apron and walking away, bumping into the rudely smirking customer, making them stumble with an enraged shriek into a drink that was being held by a now former co-worker of hers.

She grinned wickedly as she walked off, ignoring the commotion she left behind her.  
It had been over a month since she moved.  
She’d decided to get a job, at least that way she wouldn’t be banking on her savings, even if she hadn’t touched her bank account containing money from her dad.

Her jobs had been spectacular failures.  
She first got a job as a waiter at a restaurant.  
Didn’t go as well as she’d thought when faced with rude customers and uncaring bosses who screamed at you until spittle flew everywhere.

She got fired less than a week after punching her boss in frustration.

Luckily she hadn’t been sued.

The following week had seen her working in a small boutique but she willingly left after the girly shrieks, giggles and gossips got too much for her.

Then finally, her job as a barista.  
It had been going quite nicely until she unknowingly managed to piss off some lady who frequented the café.

For the next few days, said lady made it her life’s mission to criticize everything she did and get her fired and surprise surprise!  
She got fired!

Leah breathed in through her nose.  
Maybe she truly was a failure like everyone in La Push thought.  
Her life certainly wasn’t any better than it was in La Push.

She still found people who made her life hell, no matter where she was.

Her heart squeezed painfully in her chest and she felt her tear ducts become heavy as she stopped by the sidewalk, squeezing her eyes shut.

She wouldn’t let anyone see her weakness.  
Not even herself.

“Excuse me? Are you stopping by for the job interview?”  
A soft female voice broke her out of her thoughts and she turned to see a lady in her late 30s, a kind smile on her face, poking her head out through a glass door.

Leah looked up.

‘Erin’s Bookland'

A bookstore.

Leah had always loved books.

Novels to be precise.

The smell of the paper, the feel of turning a page, imagining living as the main character.  
It was why she’d always wanted to study English Literature.  
Her love for the pages of the books that held thousands of words.

It was something she’d forgotten.

But now, she felt this… need, to get that back again.

Something that had been taken forcefully from her.

It seemed like the only thing she’d be good at, besides tearing leaches apart, that is.

“Yes miss. That’s why I’m here, actually.”

The woman smiled kindly at her and Leah wondered how she could seem so nice, even to a stranger like her.

“Well come on in then! Let’s see what you’ve got.”

* * *

And now she’d spent 4 months in total, in Seattle, and was enjoying working at Erin’s.

It was a cozy place, yet not too small.  
It had rows and rows of books of all types.  
Fiction, horror, biographies, psychological, even medical books and so on.

Leah had earlier found herself gravitating towards the books, occasionally staring wistfully at them, until Erin, the lady who’d spoken to her the first time had told her to just go for it.

She sat behind the counter now, occasionally reading through books and falling in love with the pages again.

It helped that this time, the customers were calm and collected as they entered the store to sit and read or buy a book.

Perfect for someone like her who hated interacting with people, especially rude people, as it grated on her nerves which in turn made her pissed off to the point of wanting to phase.

And it was on one of these days, that she met someone who would slowly but surely grow into a real friend.

* * *

“Hi! Do you have any idea where the psychology major books are?”  
A calm but friendly voice broke Leah from her reading and she looked up from the counter, a rather blank look on her face.

She found herself staring at a girl almost as tall as herself. And Leah was tall at 6’0, making the girl possibly 5’10 or 5’11.

She had wavy dark brown hair that fell just past her shoulder blades and bright blue eyes, her skin was tan and she was pretty skinny but healthy. Possibly athletic. She was pretty, and if Leah had swung the other way, would be attracted to her.

“Down the 3rd shelf to your right.”

The girl gave Leah a thankful grin.

“Thank you!”  
She gave a happy jiggle before skipping over to her destination, leaving Leah to stare in disgust at how happy the other girl seemed to be.

It was just over a few minutes when a thump sounded on the counter again and Leah looked back up to see the girl again with a grin on her face, and over 8 books all on psychology on the table.

Leah raised an eyebrow as she slowly began to calculate how much they all cost.

“I saw that eyebrow raising by the way, and I’m sure you’re wondering exactly what I’m doing with this large amount of books.”

“No, not really.”

Leah replied with a fake grin but the girl only laughed.  
“Well okay I’ll tell you if you’re this curious. I’m about to start night school and so I need to brush up on psychology all over again or whatever. That’s what I want to study in Uni see…”

“Good for you…”  
Leah droned absentmindedly as she put the books in a brown paper bag and the girl snickered.

“Hey, you’re pretty cool. I’m Amaranta, but call me Amara. I have no idea what my parents were thinking when they gave me that blasted name.”

“Hm…Leah.”  
She droned again, before stopping short as she suddenly realized she’d actually given her name to this… stranger who was now smiling like a cat that caught the canary.

“Pleasure to meet you Leah! Nice name! Well I guess I have to leave now, but I hope to see you again! You seem my age, a bunch of my friends are in college so I don’t have people I hangout with much. See you around!”

She waved before walking off after paying, leaving Leah wondering what that was.  
It couldn’t possibly be human.

But… then again, she reminded Leah of her baby brother.

Her heart stung at the thought of Seth.

Her brother whom she hadn’t spoken to for over 4 months now.

She wondered just what he thought of her right now.

'He must hate me…'

She thought brokenly, as she stared out the slightly dark door, lost in her dark mood again.

* * *

Amara became a familiar face at Erin’s over the next few weeks and spoke about herself.

Apparently after graduation, she’d decided to backpack around Italy for a year instead of going straight into college, much to the shock and subsequent anger of her parents.

Now that she was back though, she’d decided to just go for it.

She’d always loved psychology, and that was what she was pursuing.

She had one day told Leah that, that was what sort of drew her to Leah.

Apparently, Leah had this 'dark cloud' hanging around her, her face was in a permanent blankness, she never smiled, talk less of laughing. Though there was the occasional scowl.

She’d one day declared Leah her patient, leaving Leah wary of her.

She wasn’t going to allow herself be treated like some experiment. Some anomaly.

Not again.

Never again.

She knew who she was, what she’d become.

She didn’t care if people didn’t know.

She knew she couldn’t move on, there was just too much past grievances left untended to, but she could at least try to block it all into the deepest and dankest part of her mind and try to live on.

* * *

“You know, I was suddenly curious about the meaning of your name, and so I checked it out. Did you know Leah could mean 'Wild cow'?”  
Amara said one day as she walked into Erin’s and slumped by the counter, leaving Leah slightly disgruntled.

She was already used to the girls lack of personal space, and wasn’t that scary?

“Biblically it could also mean weary, tired.”

“Like how I feel now… maybe that’s why my parents gave me the name. Must have been a premonition.”  
Leah mumbled as she turned from a curious looking Amara, itching her dark circles as she hadn’t been able to sleep much since she moved.

Well, she never had been able to.

“Well…the Irish meaning is 'light of the sun’ you know. And the Assyrian meaning is 'Mistress or ruler' so it’s not that bad.”

“Any reason why you were researching my name?”  
Leah asked snidely but Amara didn’t bat any lashes.

“Like I said, I was curious.”

“Shouldn’t you be getting ready for your night classes or something?”

“I am, I’m leaving from here. There’s an early class by 7 instead of the usual 8. You should check out the classes. I know how much you love Literature…”  
Amara wiggled her eyebrows and Leah scoffed at the thought though she felt something deep down.

Wistfulness.

“No, thank you. I’d rather stay here.”

Amara shrugged.  
“Your loss.”

Another reason why Leah didn’t mind Amara's presence too much?

She didn’t push.

She never hovered.

Not like some…

She instead let her make her decisions, like a normal person should.

* * *

But how much she loved to give side comments and plant ideas in her mind.

Psychology major indeed.

It was over a month and Leah finally decided to just check out the night class Amara had so bragged about.

She had an early day off and Amara had slyly said another teacher would be giving a bunch of other people a literature class.

That evening, Leah dressed casually in skinny jeans and a round neck shirt and sandals, walking behind a super ecstatic Amara.

“Don’t worry Leah! I can guarantee you’ll love it!”

She beamed and Leah groaned, wondering exactly what situation she’d put herself in.

* * *

But Leah was wrong.

As soon as the class started, she didn’t want to leave. She instantly fell in love with the professors words. The way she spoke, like there was nothing else but just you and her in the class.

She had no idea an hour had passed until the professor spoke again.

“And that’s it for today. No assignments will be given…”  
Cheers were heard as people stood up in groups, and Leah decided to use the opportunity to just leave.

“Excuse me young lady?”  
The soft but strong voice of the professor stopped Leah and she turned, startled at being called as other students walked out, happy for the class to be over.

The teacher, Mrs. Fray, had a smile on her face.  
She was short at 5’4 and a little plump but had a carefree air going on around her that made Leah immediately think of hippies and the likes.

“Um, hi”  
Leah finally spoke up, awkward at being spoken to.

She cursed Amara silently for making her come to the class. Then again, it wasn’t like she was forced…

Just convinced—

That bitch!

“I saw how super attentive and interested you seemed in the subject. Are you a new student?”

Leah fought down her panic.  
“Ah, n-no actually. Just… a friend convinced me to check it out.”  
And yes, she used the word 'friend' very loosely.

Mrs. Fray smiled and nodded.  
“Well, you certainly seemed interested. And you seemed to know a thing or two about what I was saying, what with the way you nodded every once in a while. You seem rather brilliant enough.”

Leah was left startled.  
No one had ever said such to her before.  
Not even her parents who had been supportive of what she wanted to study, and that was saying a lot.

It left her flustered.

“Um… I… it’s uh…”

The woman grinned before digging into her bag and bringing out a slightly squeezed brochure.  
“Check this out. You just might find yourself getting interested. I didn’t catch your name by the way…”

“It’s Leah…”  
She replied rather absentmindedly, as she stared at the brochure of the night school, with it’s schedules and quite cheap payment.

“Well, it was nice to meet you Leah. Think about coming back here, might do you some good.”

The sound of Mrs. Fray's heels gradually receding was all she heard, as she continued staring at the brochure, and a feeling of unsurety settled in her stomach.

What to do…

* * *

She doesn’t return back to the night school until a week, and Amara gives her a huge supporting grin for it, which made Leah relax a bit.

Maybe it would indeed be a good thing after all.

And so, she began taking night classes after discussing shifts with Erin, her boss, who seemed to be in support of what she wanted to do.

Her reply when she found out about night school was

“I always hoped you’d realize you were made for more than just a bookstore. This is MY dream Leah, not yours… go make yours while you can.”

She’d finished with a wink.

It definitely touched Leah’s heart.

* * *

It had been at least 2 months, and college admission tests were around the corner.

While Amara seemed pretty much laid back about it, Leah on the other hand, had gone into panic rampage mode, wary of taking the exams as she wasn’t sure she was even ready for it, and in the process, her already low amount of sleep time lessened.

“Ow come on Leah! You’ll do well! I mean, it’s you we’re talking about here! Chill!”  
Leah scoffed as she handed a customer their books and waved them off slightly impatiently, eliciting a small huff from them which she rolled her eyes at.

“See? You’re scaring even the customers!”

Leah glared heatedly at her friend back. And wasn’t that something?

She’d finally acknowledged Amara Parker as a… friend.

“Well excuse me for caring about the exams! You’re 20! If you fail, which I highly doubt, you can still take it next year and still be young and eager for college! But me on the other hand, I'm—"

“Beautiful, smart, athletic, strong, brilliant and just 22 years old! Leah!”  
Amara chuckled in a weary way, facing Leah.

“You’re not too old to be in college! Geez! You’re still young and energetic and… you’ve got me!”  
She playfully winked and Leah scoffed, though the tell tale signs of her lips upturned a little by the sides showed.

Leah was touched.

She sighed.

“Sorry… for putting it all on you for a minute there… I don’t know if you’ve noticed but I’m not exactly a positive person. Haven’t had a lot of positivity in my life.”  
She mumbled, heart in pain, and no idea why she was suddenly saying this. It could be because her throat was slightly chocked up and constrict, and having the closest thing to a friend actually say they believed in her.

Amara gave her a soft smile.

“Everyone goes through a thing or two in their life Leah…”

Leah scoffed, her face slightly closing off again as she typed something in the computer sitting on the counter.

“Yeah well I’m not normal then, since mine’s not a thing or 2, rather a thing or 200.”

Amara sighed.

“Leah…”

Leah waved her off.

“It’s okay you know… I’ve told you to get used to this… unfixable person you see before you.”

There was a slight moment of silence before Amara spoke again.

“Hm, maybe you are right and you’re as unfixable by anyone as you think… but… maybe the person meant to fix you, is you… and not me, or any other person. Maybe… you need to mend yourself together. Even if you still end up feeling incomplete. Mend yourself together, and ignore the cracks and holes as just… human nature. A way of healing.”

She finished softly, patting Leah on the hand and waving her as she turned to go.  
Leah spoke up again, mind slowly taking in what Amara had said.

“Maybe… you’d be one hell of a psychologist after all.”  
She softly said, and Amara turned to her with a cheeky grin and a wink, before skipping out of Erin’s, leaving Leah slightly deep in thought, as the tell tale sign of thunder rumbling in the afternoon skies sounded.

She sighed.

A slightly melancholic smile on her face, as she stared at the door her friend had just walked out of.

“Maybe you’re right Amaranta Parker. Or, maybe my family tree has made me as broken as I think.”

She sighed bitterly.

“Fuck you ancestors for ruining everything.”

* * *

Leah grinned as she checked her SATs with her friend at an internet café a few blocks down Amara's house.

Magnolia.

And wasn’t that something.

Learning Amara was from a rich household.  
She rarely acted like one of those spoilt rich brats Leah had heard of and occasionally seen.

It surely was a learning experience.

Amara whooped.

“Told you you’d do well! Oh my God! I can’t believe we might actually end up going to the same Uni!”  
She screeched happily, ignoring the glaring multitude that seemed irked at her.

Leah didn’t care though, she was quite excited.

She made it!

She actually made it!

And she’d submitted her applications to Washington State University, Pullman, with Amara with the hopes of getting admission there as well.  
Of course, they had also submitted to some other places too so as not to end up disappointed. But Leah truly hoped she got into WSU.

“Hey, how about a celebratory dinner at my place? My parents have been really eager to meet the friend who’s made me stay in night school till now.”  
Amara wiggled her eyebrows and Leah snorted, though a feeling of not being good enough settled in her.

She wasn’t exactly what a bunch of comfortable rich parents would expect for a friend of there daughter’s.

“Hm, maybe another day.”

Amara sighed.

“One day I’ll get you to say yes.”

She grinned only to be waved off as they walked out of the café.  
Leah would make sure it was a while before that happened, in case she lost her friend.  
She wanted to enjoy and bask in the feeling of having someone to talk to, even if she hasn’t fully put her trust in Amara yet.

“Come on, I know a place we can have good food.”

Amara snorted.

“Of course, I mean it’s you. Who gets in the way of the mighty Leah Clearwater and her food?”

She joked and Leah scoffed, playfully hitting her shoulder to shoulder.

Yeah… definitely bask in the feeling of friendship… if only for a while.

* * *

It was August 26th.

Leah had a strange smile on her face as she walked side by side with her friend Amara in WSU.

Yes.

She made it in.

Who’d have thought.

Compared to months ago when she was in La Push, she couldn’t even compare her new self with her old self, no matter how little the change was.

A few weeks back, she got her admission letter, she had been so shocked, not having expected such a thing, but it did happen.

She’d gotten aid with the Native American Grant and that helped her with a lot of things.  
And now, she was studying what she’d always wanted to all those years ago.

English Literature.

“I can’t believe it Leah… we’re here! Honestly if it wasn’t for you, I’d really not be looking forward to entering college, so… thanks amigo.”

Leah chuckled.

“Yeah well, if it hadn’t been for you, I would probably not have followed my dreams and given up on it, so… thanks… amigo.”

Amara chuckled before joining their arms together as they took their first step into the school’s administration building.

The beginning of a new chapter for Leah Clearwater.

* * *

And so, time flew by as Leah began college.

It was rather difficult for her, getting used to not watching her back for fear of being attacked, even if not by leeches.

The first year had been difficult for her, getting used to having a schedule not planned by her.

Having 2 other roommates apart from Amara that she didn’t even know.  
She got introduced to other people her age, through Amara of course and her roommates, Clare and Mary.

Not that she particularly cared about meeting people anyways, and as she got to know her roommates, with Amara’s influence of course, the setting up of dates for Leah slowly began.

It was amusing to her sometimes, irritating too, as Leah was definitely not looking for anything of that sort.

She hadn’t even healed herself yet, she didn’t think she’d have the patience for any immature boy… or girl.

Besides…

With her… ability… she knew she’d never be comfortable in a relationship, what with what she went through at the hands of her previous.

Imprinting…

Leah saw it as a sort of a curse.

It was what ruined her life after all.

It was a few weeks to the ending of her first year in college when she finally opened up to Amara about the reason she despised any sort of relationship.

“I was 20 at the time, I think… he… he disappeared, for a while. It drove me mad of course but sometimes the bastard did things to drive me mad.”

Leah spat, glaring at the table in the restaurant she was in with Amara.

“When he came back, I noticed something had changed between us… he was a bit distant, sometimes snappish, and you know what I’d do if someone was snappy to me…”  
She said with a wry grin which Amara returned.

“And then, one day, my cousin who was my best friend came visiting, and… they’d met before and I didn’t ever notice any connection between them, mostly because they hadn’t even been interested in each other one bit… or that’s what I thought… to this day, I still think I should have seen something coming at least…”

She grimaced.

“I don’t know what really happened, but I noticed just how he looked at her, and how she reciprocated that look and suddenly… it was like, I wasn’t even there anymore! Like I was the stranger in their relationship!!”

Amara’s eyes widened.

“Wait… you don’t mean…”

Leah scoffed.

Years of anger suddenly reigniting in her and she felt like she could suddenly explode!

“The bastard left me for my cousin! Ha! Just like that! No explanation! Just 'I'm sorry it has to be this way… but I can’t help it!’”

Even Amara looked disgusted at that.

“No he didn’t!”

“Yes he did! At least he felt guilty. But… relationships haven’t been my forth ever since then… especially when she had the gall to ask me to be her maid of honor!”

Amara’s eyes widened.

“That’s not nice… but, was that the reason you… left home?”

Leah’s eyes widened and Amara gave her a small smile.

“I’ve always read between the lines of what you always say. Mind you, I don’t think that was the only reason, but you did mention something one day that made me think that was the deciding factor…”

Leah looked into her drink.

Yes, it was the deciding factor, or one of them…

“Have you ever… grieved?”

Leah looked up at her, confused.

“Grieved?... I don’t… I’m not sure I get you.”

Amara rolled her eyes playfully.

“Have you sobbed your eyes out over it? Have you actually cried??”

She asked looking intently at Leah who frowned and shook her head.

“No… there hasn’t really been time for that… there was, a lot, going on… I couldn’t…”

Not with family issues and then leech issues, and also having the rest of the pack in her head. She’d have looked pathetic to them and they’d have had more to mock her on.

Amara sighed.

“You should try doing that one day you know? Letting it all out, screaming out to your hearts content one day, alone too. Just… letting it go… you have a lot of pent up anger in you, it’s not good for you. Yes you’re strong and all, but even the strongest person feels vulnerable every once in a while.”

Leah scoffed, a smile playing on her lips.

“How many times do I have to tell you not to make me into one of your patients??”

Amara shrugged nonchalantly.

“Hey! At least I’m not charging you!”

Leah snorted and Amara chuckled.

But one thing Leah noticed though, was after that small heart to heart, Amara never tried to make her go on dates anymore, and just like that, their other roommates stopped too.  
Her first year was finally over.

And with it, a trip with Amara, Clare and Mary was planned. It was her very first trip, with friends.

Something she never thought possible.  
Last year Christmas, she’d spent it on her own, no matter how much Amara urged her to come home with her.

She just… couldn’t.

It was probably the guilt she was feeling for having abandoned her mother and baby brother.

She really and truly hoped that all was well back home.

Sometimes she wondered if she should just make a call home… but, she feared being rejected. Or even finding out she hadn’t been missed.

The trip wasn’t too hectic or whatever, instead they were traveling to Disneyland Park in California.

Leah thought it was awfully childish, but deep down, she was excited to actually be traveling.

It wasn’t only one destination they had though. They made the most of it all. Between acting like tourists, sneaking into high end bars without invitations and even on one occasion, destruction of public property… but they were drunk… hopefully?  
After all, it took A LOT to make Leah Clearwater, shape shifter extraordinaire, drunk.

And, it was on this trip, she actually broke down.

Maybe it was the high adrenaline, or the freeing feeling she felt suddenly… Maybe it was the slight homesick feeling, being unable to actually go home for a vacation.

Or maybe she missed her father.

She went on a walk on her own… to a nice quiet side of a beach, watching people be happy, carefree and without a thought.

Suddenly, her knees buckled beneath her, and her eyes became heavy. Leah Clearwater did what she’d never done in so long. She cried her eyes out.

For the future lost, for the pain she’d gone through, for the life she’d lived.

She cried for her mother.

Her father.

Her brother.

She cried for herself, Leah Clearwater.

She screamed, let herself go until she was suddenly exhausted as she lay on the Sandy Beach, just staring up into the dark skies, heart beating pretty fast.

And if she felt slightly good… well, that was for her to know.

* * *

Second year began with a now 23 year old Leah actually looking forward to WSU without much holding her back.

Leah found she was slowly looking like her old self back.

Her skin was certainly healthy, her caramel brown eyes suddenly didn’t look as haunted as it used to.  
Her hair, which had always fallen to the nape of her neck, was grown to her shoulder blades where she preferred. It was straight and always had a shine to it now with the products she’d gotten for her hair.

Yes, she’d taken to using some beauty products now courtesy of Mary who was into the Fashion degree.

Leah didn’t mind.

She’d been into make up and good clothes before her ancestors took that away from her.

Damned family tree.

And when Christmas finally came, Leah finally decided to accompany Amara to her home in magnolia.

And it was there that she was finally introduced to Amara’s parents.

* * *

Clarissa and Victor Parker were definitely an IT couple.

In the sense that they were definitely good-looking even at their age.

Then again, she’d always noticed how gracefully the Quileute people aged so she shouldn’t be too surprised… even if this couple weren’t native at all.

Clarissa Parker was a beautiful woman who, while she stood at 5’4, knew how to carry herself tall.  
Clarissa had her black hair that seemed glossy and fell straight to her shoulder blades, and striking blue eyes like her daughter’s.

She seemed cool and collected though a soft smile was on her face that seemed playful.  
Compared to Clarissa though, Victor Parker was a giant of a man.

Tall by at least 6’3 or 6’4. He had a burly sort of build and… a huge grin on his face, looking rather easy going. His dark brown hair similar to his daughters and a slightly full beard. His eyes were also a dark brown and all in all in seemed like a giant bear. A friendly giant bear.

Odd.

“Oh wow! Amara! Why didn’t you ever tell me your friend was this gorgeous!”  
Clarissa gushed as she walked over to Leah and Amara as they got out of the car that brought them to the mini mansion. Yes, exactly that.

As soon as she reached the girls, she pulled Leah down into a hug, surprising her at the amount of strength the seemingly harmless woman had.

Amara snorted.

“Oh hush young lady! This is your fault anyways… we needed to meet the hero who convinced you to finish night school!”

Clarissa glared at her daughter and Leah looked at her confused.

“Hero…?”

“Of course dear girl. Amara rarely ever focuses on anything! She’s a free spirit!”

Victor Parker boomed happily as he walked over, shaking her hand.

“Gee, I wonder where she got that from…”

Clarissa muttered disapprovingly at her husband who only grinned before hugging Amara and Leah realized she looked more like her father than her mother, even down to the tanned skin.

“It’s nice to meet you both.”

Leah finally spoke up and Clarissa smiled.

“You too dear. And please, call us Clarissa and Victor. We’re not that old yet.”  
She winked and Amara scoffed.

“That’s what you think.”

Leah stifled a laugh at the unimpressed look Amara’s parents gave her.

“Anyways! Pardon my dear daughter Leah dear, come let’s get inside, it’s quite cold after all.”

* * *

The holidays went better than Leah expected.  
Amara’s parents were perfectly nice.

A bit odd yes, but who wasn’t?

They treated her like she wasn’t a stranger.

Victor Parker made her laugh with his obscene dad jokes that Clarissa hated while Clarissa regaled her with tales of balls and trips she’d been to.

And when it was Christmas, she actually ended up getting presents from them. Clarissa and Victor had both gotten her a joint present.

Then Amara and Leah had accompanied Victor to a shooting range where Leah learned how to shoot for the first time.  
It hadn’t been that difficult, what with her 'supernatural strength’ and accuracy. It had been fun and stress relieving.

She knew she imagined some unnamable people being at the end of said gun.

And then on the last day of her stay there, the family and Leah included, went somewhere nice for dinner and though Leah hadn’t had anything really nice for the place, she borrowed a nice silver knee length gown from Amara.

Leah had to admit she was gorgeous!

And as she went back to school with Amara, both Victor and Clarissa hoping she’d come visit them again, she actually found herself looking forward to it.

Like a subconscious part of her who wanted and missed her family was clinging to them.

All in all, it had been a very nice trip.

And so, school went on and Leah slowly got better, getting the hang of college and slightly pushing her feelings away and just focusing on her books.

Amara noticed after a while, but she decided not to say anything except she actually needed to.

Leah Clearwater was an headstrong woman after all. You don’t tell her what to do. You just… made her see what could be.

And so, 2nd year also came to an end, with Leah deciding to actually take a trip on her own.

Because, as Amara had once said, it would be 'Life Changing'.

She decided to go to New Orleans.

It’s one place she’d always wanted to explore and tour.  
But she had never been able to.  
And after packing just some little things, she was on her way.

New Orleans, the French Quarter to be precise, was a beautiful and historical place.  
It’s old fashioned buildings and elegance was one of the reasons it was a popular tourist spot.

Leah found that she had quite a good time, going from one place to the other.

She went to the French Market, Royal Street, where she tasted some bourbon too, Jackson Square, among others.

In Jackson Square, there were lots of busking bands, street artists and fortune tellers.  
There was a lot to see, and of course, she bought some things for herself and her friends to commemorate her time in the historical city.

One afternoon though, as she walked through Jackson Square, just enjoying the bands and the hot sun on her glowing skin, a lady by a stand called her.  
“Young lady, I’ve seen you here before. Come, let me read your fortune.”

The woman with the slightly French accent was a beautiful middle aged woman, with flawless mocha skin and green eyes. A friendly smile on her face as she sat behind a table and some trinkets on it.

Leah grimaced.

While she definitely believed there was more to the world than just what normal humans expected, it didn’t mean she trusted this so-called fortune tellers.

Leah shook her head.  
“Um, no thanks. I have somewhere to be.”

The woman chuckled.  
“Ah, don’t be shy now Ma Cherie, it won’t take long. Come.”  
The lady beckoned her over with a grin, her right palm stretched opened.

Leah sighed.  
Well, there really wasn’t any harm the woman could do to her anyways, and so she decided to walk over to her, placing her palm on the woman’s, frowning.

“You’re palm reading?”  
She asked, looking at the woman like she knew she was some kind of a fraud.

The lady smiled.  
“On a normal day, I would do some tarots, but darling, you aura is definitely everywhere! It’s fascinating.”

She grinned and Leah frowned at the woman, biting down on her impatience.  
After a few seconds, she looked up with a slightly puzzled look.

“You, my dear, are a peculiar one. Your life is slightly muddled up, but it would seem like you’re the only one trying to untangle all the pieces.”

Leah raised an eyebrow.  
“I think that much is obvious.”

“Not to me, no. But I am right hm?”

She grinned victoriously and Leah huffed.  
“Your love life is in quite a disarray too. There is pain, hate, sadness, and very little happiness. There is also betrayal.”

Leah’s eyes widened slightly as the woman continued staring at… something! In her palm.

“You have family issues to it would seem. Not to serious but not too simple either. More, in between it is. Friendships… Slight. Though, oh yes, there is one valued above all…”

Amara came to mind.  
“You also battle with yourself?”

The woman finally looked up, slightly confused and Leah was left looking shocked as the woman basically told her life story in the matter of seconds.

“M-myself?”  
The woman nodded.

“Yes… I don’t know how to put it Ma Cherie, but it is like you battle with yourself. From the inside out. Like a raging anger tied to said battle. It is like you are two, yet one.”

Leah’s heart began beating at that.  
That was basically how she felt with the wolf part of her.  
An heritage she never wanted but was forced upon her by her ancestors.

Her family tree.

Leah closed her eyes, taking a deep breath before opening it.

“Is that… is that all?”  
She asked hesitantly, and the woman had a slightly sympathetic look in her face which Leah ignored.

She didn’t like it when people felt sympathy for her when they didn’t even know her full story.

“Well… like I said, it is slightly… tangled. I can only see the untangled parts. It would also seem like the battle with yourself is quite a huge factor. Like something holding you from being who and what you want?”

Leah took back her hand.  
She was exhausted already and just wanted to go home.  
“Um, thank you… for this…”

She mumbled, moving to give the woman money but she waved it off with a soft smile.  
“No, young woman. I won’t take it. I called you here, non? It is because of the aura you carry. I hope I helped you a little.”

Leah forced a smile on her face before turning to walk away.

“Wait!”  
The lady called once more, and Leah turned back.

“You know… if you’re struggling as much as I think you are… sometimes, it’s always good to write down how you feel. It doesn’t need to be in a journal. You could even write a letter of some sort… it could be addressed to whoever you want. I find that it releases the soul when you pour out your feelings into something you write. It might do you some good.”  
She winked, and Leah slowly nodded, walking back to her hotel.

* * *

Some days later, she actually ended up trying her hand at writing letters. In her email.

Although, never sending them.

She started with the people who actually mattered to her the most.

Her mom, her baby brother… and her father.  
And she found herself keeping up with writing the letters… because it actually did her well, for her soul.

She did end up leaving a week earlier though, when the achingly sweet and sugary smell of a leech's scent wafted through her nostrils one evening, leaving her jittery and her wolf fighting to bursting out to take out the enemy.

But Leah has turned her back on that side of herself. And she was hoping with all her heart that one day, she’d finally stop phasing… completely.

* * *

3rd year of college came soon enough, and Leah marveled at just how her life had changed so much in the span of a few years.  
A friend she could call her best friend—okay, maybe that was taking it too far for Leah Clearwater.

But yes, she had a good friend.

Her 2 other roommates could also be classified as friends too.  
Sue had some good acquaintances and some select few haters.

All in all, she realized that she was slowly building a life in Seattle.

That thought scared and pleased her nonetheless.

Scared her because it seemed she was slowly moving on without her family.

Pleased her because she could look to the future and actually see herself down a road she paved for herself.

And so, another Christmas passed with Leah spending it with the Parkers again, and then New Year came and went, with exams as well, and Leah found that her 3rd year had gone by so fast it had seemed like it never happened.

Was this how normal people felt?

She kept up with her letters too, and occasionally wrote one to Chief Swan.  
And when 4th year finally rolled in, Leah Clearwater began to really look forward to a life made by her.

Things had changed for her.

She was more lively.

She had also changed.

She wasn’t the same hyper girl she had been before the change, and she sure as hell wasn’t the bitchy and broken Leah Clearwater she had been after the change.

She was different.

Circumstances had made her different.  
She was now strong, confident, and a force to be reckoned with.

She had tried to fix the damaged parts of her, and while there were still some slight holes and cracks that even she couldn’t fix, she was now unbreakable.

She had gone through it all, seen it all, and now she stood tall, unshakable.

Past memories still brought twinges of pain to her heart whenever she focused on them, but she more or less focused on herself, on her family too.

At least they were still alive.

She’d checked using online means after all.  
She didn’t go into it much as she didn’t want to know too much.

And then the day of her graduation came.

While she was slightly melancholic and sad that she didn’t have her family with her… as she held her diploma and got ready for her internship at a reputable publishing house, taking pictures with friends and also the Parkers, she realized that… she was happy.

* * *

6 months later.

25 years old Leah Clearwater groaned as she was dragged through the crowd arm in arm with Amara.

Not that she minded Amara, it was more the people around her she minded.

It was a Christmas ball of some sort, hosted by one of Amara’s rich family members.

Leah suspected they’d be snubs.

Look at their house!

Or rather… mansion!

And then the people in attendance… honestly, Leah was 100% certain that she was the poorest guest here tonight.

She groaned again.

“Oh come now Leah! It’s nice to loosen up every once in a while, you know!”

Leah glared at her.  
“Well why didn’t you go with Steven!”

Steven was Amara’s boyfriend going on one year. He was alright in Leah’s books but now she wasn’t so sure, given that he was the reason she was here as Amara’s plus two.

Amara waved her off as she grabbed two glasses of champagne and handed Leah one who grudgingly took it.

“He had a family dinner to go to. And besides, it’s you I wanted to go with anyways… now look alive Leah Clearwater! You look amazing!”

And she really was.

Dressed in a silver backless gown that fell to the ground and had a slight slit, she knew she had seen quite a lot of people staring at her ever since she walked into the ball room that evening.

Not that she even cared.

She just wanted to be in her bed right now, reading a wonderful novel and sipping hot chocolate while wondering how Amara was doing that evening.

After graduation, Amara and Leah had moved into a very nice apartment, both using their money, no matter how much Amara’s parents wanted to pay for it.

This time, Leah took some money out of her inheritance and used it to pay for half the lease, making her half owner, along with Amara.

“You know I hate people staring at me for too long.”

“Yes, yes. But get used to it—Oh! Look at that, I’ll be right back Leah, I just saw an old family friend.”

Amara spoke up rather excitedly, before leaving Leah alone in the midst of some people she’d never met in her life.

At least she had her champagne… she thought humorously.

Leah stared around at the crown, the noise of murmuring, laughter and exclamations reaching her ears as everyone spoke to different people.

The ball room was beautifully decorated and while glamorous, didn’t look bad. It was easy on the eyes.

Bravo to the decorator.

She spotted a bunch of people around her age too, though majority of the people here were more or less in their 40s, 50s, 60s and even 70s.

Bunch of old timers.

Just then, as Leah's eyes moved from one group to another, her eyes stopped short on one small group, or rather, a someone in the group.

He was tall.

Quite tall actually… possibly 6’4 or so, and he was muscular too, if the way his black clearly expensive velvet suit slightly hugged his arms.

He had dark black hair that was slightly curled up and Leah couldn’t see his eyes though, but the way he talked, his lips which Leah zeroed in on… there was just… something, about him.

It was as if he knew someone was focused on him, because he looked up, and right at Leah.

And Leah felt her whole world shift.


End file.
